Askena

Askena is quiet. Though she is a woman of few words one should never underestimate her, because Askena is a Doer.

Ms. Torres has a lot of extended family in Cabarrus County. In fact, in 2014 when she applied with Habitat Cabarrus Askena lived with family. She shared an overcrowded 3-bedroom house with eight other people. Askena, her daughter, and her sister shared a single bedroom.

Askena originally heard about the Habitat homeownership program through a distant cousin. She had been looking for an apartment she could afford but with a low income her rental situation was grim. Askena applied with Habitat Cabarrus and didn’t qualify initially because she didn’t have a full year’s rental history.

What Askena did have was solid employment and a great reputation as a hard worker which made her a good fit for the transitional housing program. Once there was an apartment in Habitat Cabarrus’ transitional housing complex Askena moved in.

Her employer is an industrial greenhouse, so her work load increases and decreases with the seasons. For example, the lead up to Valentine’s Day could see Askena working 12 days in a row. These fluctuations made meeting sweat equity hours a challenge for her. At times Askena questioned if she would be able to complete her hours, but she dug in and never lost sight of her goal – a safe home for her daughter with space for some much-needed privacy.

Askena relished learning ways to make her money work for her through the Dave Ramsey financial classes. She has worked steadily for three years and has retired most of her debt. Once her home is complete Askena will be on solid financial footing for the next stage of her life.